14 month old DS not reaching milestones.
Should I be worried?

I do realise children develop at different rates. I have sent a referral to my paed and am waiting to hear back. I thought I would pop in here and ask anyway.

My 14 month old DS is not quite walking yet, but close. He climbs, crawls very well, furniture cruises etc. The walking thing I am not concerned about.

I am worried because he does not respond to his name. His hearing is fine. He responds every now and then but not often. He does not wave "bye bye", he does not point to things and he only says mumma. He did say nanna, dadda and bubba but has regressed.

I don't want to worry but I want to be proactive too. He had torticollis, plagiocephaly and helmet therapy so I guess I have become aware of things that might be an issue. I just want to make life as easy for him as possible in the future.

Thank you

ETA - I would not have been worried if the nurse had not said something and then I did a google. I know, I know. Stay away from Google!

I am worried because he does not respond to his name. His hearing is fine. He responds every now and then but not often. He does not wave "bye bye", he does not point to things and he only says mumma. He did say nanna, dadda and bubba but has regressed.

DD was the same, even at aged 2, she just never learnt to point or wave unprompted. I would make an appointment with a developmental paediatrician, if for nothing else except to put your mind at ease. The waiting for good ones are notoriously long, so when the time comes you may not even want it anymore, but at least you'll have that option.

Good luck, and try to stay away from Dr Google in the interim (although it can often have a lot of useful information), it's also a sure fire way to miss out on a lot of sleep

that does not sound dissimilar to my ds who just turned 2. While my son had reached his milestones later then my dd did, he did reach them all eventually, except he is still not talking that much, and babbles alot. He often will say a word once then i wont hear it again for months. Its like he can talk if its on his terms, but as soon as you try to force it he clams up! Very stubbern little man indeed lol. But the main thing is that i have observed progression. Even the not coming to his name thing, i figured out i was just being ignored! You can call his name and get no response, then call out i have a treat for you! and he comes running! I wouldnt worry too much, but for sure take him to the pead just for some reassurance. I bet hes probaly fine though. good luck!

My son is the same sometimes as in doesn't always respond to his name and we have checked his hearing which is fine though he does have very sensitive hearing so he hearing is very overwhelming for him sometimes.And my son didn't walk till he was 22 months if he wasn't walking by his second birthday he would have been seen by a physio.

As gumbette said maybe make an appointment with a Pead just to clear any niggling thoughts.

This piece might be a good lauching off point for your discussion with your paed. It could be relevant that your son seems to have regressed with his speech, so be sure to alert your paed to that development as well.

You might also want to take a look at the link in my signature to see if anything there resonates with you.

It's wonderful that you are so on top of your son's development and that you are being proactive about getting professional guidance. If there are issues that need to be addressed, the earlier you catch them, the better.

Google can be a double edged sword. Information can help us get answers, but in some instances, it can cause undue stress. I bet you will feel better when you can sit down and actually talk about your concerns with the paed rather than a search engine.

The thing is, he doesn't wave or point even when promoted. He has no idea. Hopefully he will just get it one day. He can clap though. Someone did mention that there are red flags there for autism. Other things he does too like obsessed with spinning a wheel. Appearing deaf when hearing is fine. Regression with some things. I am trying not to look into it too much because he is only 14 months but it will be good once we see the paed.

Baddmammajamma - sorry, I posted at the same time as you! Thank you for your reply. I will have a look at your signature now. Thank you for praising the fact that I am being proactive. My DH thinks I'm being OTT but I refuse to bury my head in the sand. I would never forgive myself if I could have done something to make my DS's life easier.

Sunnycat, thanks for the reply. I have been told that lots of boys are slower, especially when learning physical skills like walking, their language goes out the window. Have you heard that before?

The thing is, he doesn't wave or point even when promoted. He has no idea. Hopefully he will just get it one day. He can clap though. Someone did mention that there are red flags there for autism. Other things he does too like obsessed with spinning a wheel. Appearing deaf when hearing is fine. Regression with some things. I am trying not to look into it too much because he is only 14 months but it will be good once we see the paed.

Hi again Panda:

One of the best summaries of the "Early Warning Signs of Autism" I have ever come across is this site:

It's from the University of California-San Diego's Autism Center for Excellence. They are very "leading edge" when it comes to very early detection and intervention for ASD.

A child may show "flags" for autism and not actually have autism -- but if your son is in fact showing some of these signs, you should investigate further with a qualified professional (meaning, a developmental paediatrician, or a generalist paed who has a deep interest in/experience with children on the autism spectrum, a child psychiatrist, or clinical psych who specializes in ASD) -- if for no other reason right now that to get on their radar screen & have your son under their watchful eyes in the coming months.

PS: When you call your paed, DO mention to whoever takes your call that you are seeing some regression. It might be nothing significant, but your paed might be willing to see you sooner rather than later if you mention this development.

Good on you for looking into it. I think being proactive early and finding nothing wrong is better than not chasing it up and finding out later that there was a problem.

Google can be a terrible thing but if used sensibly it can also help you to head in the right direction. The regression would be my main concern here. Any regression needs to be checked out by a qualified medical professional. I'd suggest booking into a developmental paediatrician to investigate further.

yep my son did the spinning wheels thing too! He really has turned into a very clever little monkey though, much to my husbands relief, he was a little worried there for a while, but i never was. My gut told me he was fine so i never worried. I have a cousin who is autistic so i knew what to watch out for and my son definatly does not display anything like that. I am sure ur son will turn into a clever monkey eventually too

I have heard that panda that boys are much slower my ds is actually at a 18 month old level and he is 3. And his language is very behind we will be seeing a speechie soon.

Funny my ds loves spinning wheels to he will go up to anything with wheels (even other ppls prams) and try to spin the wheels he has so many toy cars here and he is forever playing with them.And my ds is getting assessed for autism and many other things.

I wrote a similar post when DS was the same age. I think it's great that you've made an appointment and want to be proactive. But please, stay away from Google. I was so stressed this time last year my hair fell out.

He wasn't responding to his name, wasn't clapping his hands, didn't point and wasn't playing with toys appropriately. He didn't start to improve until we put him into daycare under the advice of our paed. I also spent a lot of time calling his name, and I think it finally twigged that I was talking to him and he would turn around.

DS walked at 13 months, but has shown delays in other areas including some sensory issues. We've worked through most of these with daycare, OT and we are now just dealing with a severe language delay. He has only just started saying mumma/dadda in the last couple of months, loves imitating animal noises but mostly it's all babble. He's constantly babbling.

I'm not going to say I think it's normal and you've got nothing to worry about but I wanted to share my experience with you. I do think you should get him checked out though.

dS1 at 26 m was assessed as having receptive language 11mo and expressive if a 7mo. He was a 16.5 m walker (19.5m for DS2). Had less then 10 words hardly ever used at 2yrs. I was told to seek specialist help as he was showing red flag signs ( their assessment was he was autistic), including hand flapping when excited and spinning wheels, lining up cars etc.

Knowing my kids personality I left it. He went back for reassessment at 3.5yrs and was ahead in speech, showing no autistic signs. They wanted to know what early intervention I had done.... None. He was just a late slow developer. Like PP said would not respond to name, but would come running at park.

He has just finished 1st grade. Very smart (doing 4th grade maths at times and at end of readers), sociable happy child. He would talk he hind leg off a donkey.

He also didn't point or wave or clap for a long time.

For you own peace check it out, but things can still change.

DD has just turned 3. She s a totally different beast to the boys. Talking in complex sentences at 18-20m.

I couldn't read this and not reply. I'm sorry to hear that you have concerns because I know what a journey you've been on to get this little guy and how much stress it caused, so you kinda deserve a stress free time.

I'm so glad that you are on top of thinking about this stuff. It's so important. It cold be nothing but if in the worst case it is something, you will thank yourself forever for finding it early enough.

As you know my mr E has Aspergers and I remember raising concerns about not responding to his name at 10 months and other quirks that we're little but ended up being significant.

I know you are not in a major city but I wonder if you would be willing to travel to see someone who is an expert in assessing young children?

I know of a number of children who have been assessed before the age of 2 but you would need someone who is an expert in the field. You stock standard paed will send you away regardless of any red flags. It happened to us a number of times and E was 2.5 yrs.

[bambiigrrl - I hope this doesn't come across the wrong way butwhen you said that it turns out that your son was clever, I understand the sentiment that you meant. That you were relieved that he developed normally. But autism does not mean a child has an intellectual delay. Children with autism have a range of IQ's. Mine is Very highly gifted with autism. It is simply a delay in social skills, communication and restrictive or repetitive behavior.

[bambiigrrl - I hope this doesn't come across the wrong way butwhen you said that it turns out that your son was clever, I understand the sentiment that you meant. That you were relieved that he developed normally. But autism does not mean a child has an intellectual delay. Children with autism have a range of IQ's. Mine is Very highly gifted with autism. It is simply a delay in social skills, communication and restrictive or repetitive behavior.

So is mine.

kh79, I am so glad that you posted, as I know that you & I both had the similar experience of being fobbed off my generalist paeds who didn't think our respective kids looked like the "stereotype" of autism.

Truth is, as you indicate, there is no one profile of what ASD looks like.

Panda, if you are friends with kh79, then you have a wonderful and informed ally on your side. If you are anywhere in NSW, I would be happy to provide some suggestions of great developmental specialists (via PM).

My heart goes out to you. I know what it feels like to worry about your child's development, only to be told by your partner or friends or family that you are being OTT/a nervour first time mother/etc. etc.

I hope that you are able to get some reassurances soon -- or, if there are actually issues to address, that you get some professional guidance to help you help your little guy thrive.

I have a daughter with autism and an intellectual disability and I would definately describe her as clever

QUOTE

When you call your paed, DO mention to whoever takes your call that you are seeing some regression. It might be nothing significant, but your paed might be willing to see you sooner rather than later if you mention this development

Yes, absolutely mention the regression! I am with the others: if you are worried then look into it. I was worried about my son for some time and my husband poo-poohed me. Turned out I was right. Wish to hell I had been wrong though

I also want to say: stay away from Google there are some nasty things out there and the chances of anything nasty is really quite slim

My GP started the referral letter with the mention of regression which is good. They only book appointments from the referral letters.

In the meantime, is there anything I should avoid or do just in case? This might sound silly but sometimes when he is unsettled, he won't sleep unless I put Radio by Lana Del Ray on repeat. Is that okay?

I love him so much it hurts and I just want to give him the best life possible. My DH thinks I am trying to label him but that is the last thing I am trying to do. I want to help him.

[bambiigrrl - I hope this doesn't come across the wrong way butwhen you said that it turns out that your son was clever, I understand the sentiment that you meant. That you were relieved that he developed normally. But autism does not mean a child has an intellectual delay. Children with autism have a range of IQ's. Mine is Very highly gifted with autism. It is simply a delay in social skills, communication and restrictive or repetitive behavior.

yeah true, i guess i have only known one autistic person personally and that is a severe case. I guess its not so much that my son seems clever that is a relief to me but more the fact that he is so loving and confidant and attentive, my cousin with autism is extreamly emotionally distant and sort of stares into space quite often, never says much etc. If i saw that sort fo behaviour id be extreamly worried but luckily ds seems very much the oppisite.

In the meantime, is there anything I should avoid or do just in case? This might sound silly but sometimes when he is unsettled, he won't sleep unless I put Radio by Lana Del Ray on repeat. Is that okay?

I love him so much it hurts and I just want to give him the best life possible. My DH thinks I am trying to label him but that is the last thing I am trying to do. I want to help him.

As long as it's not One Direction, you aren't doing any harm to him by playing Lana Del Ray nonstop. Seriously, though, sleep is sleep. If that's what works for you guys, then play it without guilt.

As you are waiting for appointments, my main advice would be to enjoy your time with your son (and try not to let your worries consume you, though easier said than done). He will never be a young toddler again, so try to enjoy all of the beautiful things that he is doing now.

On a practical note, there are some activities you can be doing at home to help him develop skills. Cause and effect toys, for instance, can be very valuable because they teach children that their actions can influence outcome -- so things like a jack in the box or any type of toy with buttons that produce music can be great.

If you start a separate thread on the Special Needs board (something like "Activities To Help Young Toddler Engage"), I bet you will get some useful responses. I am typing this in the dark as I try to get my son to sleep, so I'm afraid I'm not providing my best answers right now!

Also on a practical note, consider calling around to some out-of-town developmental paeds and gauging wait times (and putting your son's name down). Your generalist paed or your GP can refer you to a developmental paed, and they are probably the best situated professional to look across your son's entire developmental profile to see if there are any issues.

Lastly, it is very, very clear from your posts that you love your son with all your heart. Getting an assessment is not chasing a label -- it is a means to better understanding your child's unique wiring. And in the case of (possible) ASD, a label can mean the difference between being able to get subtantial funding/support and not.

yeah true, i guess i have only known one autistic person personally and that is a severe case. I guess its not so much that my son seems clever that is a relief to me but more the fact that he is so loving and confidant and attentive, my cousin with autism is extreamly emotionally distant and sort of stares into space quite often, never says much etc. If i saw that sort fo behaviour id be extreamly worried but luckily ds seems very much the oppisite.

I just thought I'd let you know that 'autistic person' doesn't sound as nice as 'child with autism'. I'm not having a go at you. I promise! I'm not that kind of person. I just thought you'd like to know, especially since your cousin has autism. No one wants to hear that their child is not 'perfect' but at the end of the day, we love them all the same. Well, that's how I feel!

Badd - no One Direction in this house! I think I'd end up insane listening to that on repeat! DS does have quite a few cause and effect toys and those are his favourites (besides trucks or cars).

He eats sandwiches etc but if I give him a banana, he shoves the as much in as possible and ends up gagging/half choking? Could it be related, or just something my DS needs to figure out?

bambiigrrl-If you know one person with autism then you know one person with autism. there is no 2 people with autism who are excactly the same.My daughter is a 'clever little monkey', she is extremly loving, affectionate and social, caring and confident and yet she has severe autism that impactes us greatly.

OP an assement is a great idea regardless of the outcome, he may be a late developer or there may be more but its always a good thing to act when concerned.

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